Tuesday, December 22, 2015

This is the last MMCC for 2015, with a theme of "Celebration" and an optional element of "Vellum". And since it may likely be my last post for 2015, I'm taking the opportunity to wish all of you a wonderful holiday. And only the best for 2016!

Saturday, December 12, 2015

It's that time of year. And I'm not talking about Christmas. (Not today at least, although I'm in the kitchen finishing up my Christmas cookie baking...)

It's Winter/Holiday Coffee Lovers Blog Hop time! Probably the biggest event of the year in a blogland overflowing with coffee aficionados, so I won't keep you long. Go check out all the fantastic inspiration!

I used Bubbles and Mowed Lawn and Festive Berries Distress Inks and sponged the colors onto white CS. Then I shifted the stencil slightly and sponged on Delicata gold pigment ink. Die cut the speech bubble (Avery Elle) from that and added a heat embossed sentiment from Santa is Here.

Check out what the rest of the team made! You'll find links to all our projects, a flash stencil project linky and the blog hop deets here. Thanks for visiting!

Wednesday, December 9, 2015

I had my fun with the Flutterby stencil and some Dylusions spray inks in definitely-not-Christmas-colors and water. I was going for a light and airy feel. (This card actually has a twin, bold and beautiful, and you can learn more about it in this Spotlight post.)

To soften the inks, when I removed the stencil I sprayed the panel with a Perfect Pearls water mixture. See the sparkle? It's such a subtle but wonderful addition.

As for the vellum. Honest? In keeping things simple, I had black heat embossed the sentiment from Noteworthy diretly onto the panel, but wasn't sure I had the "light and airy" feel anymore. So I white heat embossed it onto vellum, ripped the edge and wrapped it around the panel before adhering the panel to my tall card.

I purposely offset the sentiment a little bit so that it has a shadow. See?

Check out what the rest of the team made! You'll find links to all our projects, a flash stencil project linky and the blog hop deets here. Thanks for visiting!

Took my Just Squares stencil and stamped a lacy BG stamp onto it, flipped it over and "stamped" it onto my CS panel, hoping it would add interest to the white areas between the squares I was going to color. Epic fail. I'm callin' it selective splatter. You're probably thinking "looks like little specks of dirt on her card!"

Taped down the stencil and sponged silver and gold Delicata pigment ink randomly. Added a few squares of silver and gold embossing paste for texture and since you can't have too much shine on a holiday card, right?

Saturday, December 5, 2015

Another quick post today with another card inspired by the Pinterest Inspired Challenge.This image totally caught my attention. The colors are not "mine" although they work fabulously together in the image. I am not a fashionista, so it can't be that. I think it may be the doodling on the skirt...

Added circles of Festive Berries Mermaid Lagoon and Old Paper (Distress), Candy Cane Lemon Drop and Sugar Rush (Jenny Bowlin), which I spritzed with water before stamping. And a sentiment from Inky Stamps reading "everyday heroine".

I'm hooking up at Happy Little Stampers where it's about your favorite technique. I've so many, but this time I worked with the wonderful properties of Distress inks and water.

And check this out. DD's latest cake pop project posing in front of the most beautiful winter sky. The sky is courtesy of the first Christmas card to arrive in our mailbox, from none other than the uber-talented Loll of Stamping with Loll!

Friday, December 4, 2015

Quick post today with a card inspired by the Pinterest Inspired Challenge. Don't know exactly why, but this image totally caught my attention. The colors are not "mine" although they work fabulously together in the image. I am not a fashionista, so it can't be that. Maybe there's something about her pose... Maybe it's the doodling on the skirt...

This older stamp came to mind. Gooseneck from Stampotique. Cool, isn't she?

Thanks for looking. Enjoy the weekend. DH and I are in Hamburg this weekend. It's all about baking Christmas cookies for me when we get home... But there's another card for you tomorrow. Same inspiration!

Wednesday, December 2, 2015

So happy I got to join the Make it Monday fun at Papertrey. Danielle F. is splattering this week and I can't miss that. I missed the November blog hop, but its colors were my inspiration for this card along with the inspiration photo from Fusion.

And since I'm in the glitter mode, had to incorporate some glitter CS and even glitter glue splatters!

On white CS I stamped a wreath around a traced circle using Waltzingmouse Around Christmastime. Then I added the berries in various shades of blue pigment ink and gave them a little shot of clear embossing powder.

I used pigment inks with the exception of the darkest green - Adirondack Bottle. I used this, watered down, to make my splatters all over the panel.

Die cut my sentiment from glitter CS, stacked it and adhered. Stamped my secondary sentiment from Papertrey Take Three: Fall. Adhered the panel to a cardbase with foam adhesive and voila!

Tuesday, December 1, 2015

If you are looking for my mixed media card for MMCC, click here.If you are looking for my CASEplorations post, click here.

If you are looking for my RIC#97 Guest Designer post, please click here.

It's kind of a crazy day (this is my fourth post for the day), but TODAY the first thing on my list was to make a card for Virginia's View Challenge #21. Unfortunately, it's going to be the last challenge for, a while. For, ever? Virginia has decided she's going to take a break and I want to make sure she has a fantastic last hurrah! She's been so inspiring this past year. And always on top of the trends.

And I felt compelled (yep) to make an unconventional card. Did you catch this a couple days ago? People, this was trending on Instagram!!! Wait, is it Dec 1st or April Fool's?!?!?

Anyhoo (OMG... "morningwood")... anyhoo, meet my glitter beard.

Well, not really MY beard (although in the whole cray cray realm of this trend I hear the ladies are glittering their armpit hair - what?!?!?! - now too). OK, I'm done, I promise.

Just one more shot of Mr Glitter Beard Santa up close.

Since you may never visit me again (doesn't that guy on the left look like Ellen DeGeneres???), before you go let me tell you how I made this.

I grabbed the Sunday Stamps sketch #114, Waltzingmouse Around Christmastime stamp set and my gold glitter glue and glitter. Stamped the image in black and heat embossed it clear. Copic colored the hat and went to town glittering Santa's beard, first with the glitter glue and then I dumped on the loose glitter. A la The Gay Beards.

A panel of Pink Paislee Luxe PP, which is so cool cuz it's also shiny like the heat embossed area, and a strip of red GLITTER CS later, I was done! Join the fun at Virginia's, won't you? I'm off to hook up at: